Tissue engineering (TE) is the application of engineering disciplines to either maintain existing tissue structures or to enable new tissue growth. This engineering approach generally includes the delivery of a biocompatible tissue scaffold that serves as an architectural support onto which cells may attach, proliferate, and synthesize new tissue to repair a wound or defect. Preferably, the tissue scaffolds should be made of bioabsorbable materials. Bioabsorbable tissue scaffolds are absorbed by the body after the body has synthesized new tissue to repair the wound or defect. Synthetic bioabsorbable biocompatible polymers are well known in the art and include aliphatic polyesters, homopolymers, and copolymers (random, block, segmented and graft) of monomers such as glycolic acid, glycolide, lactic acid, lactide (d, l, meso and mixtures thereof), ε-caprolactone, trimethylene carbonate and p-dioxanone.
Many absorbable tissue scaffolds have been recognized for use in the repair and regeneration of tissue. Porous mesh plugs composed of polyhydroxy acid polymers such as polylactide are used for healing bone voids. More recently, other tissue engineering scaffolds have been reported. These scaffolds are manufactured by a number of different processes, including the use of leachables to create porosity in the scaffold, vacuum foaming techniques and precipitated polymer gel masses. Polymer melts with fugitive compounds that sublimate at temperatures greater than room temperature are known. Textile-based, fibrous tissue scaffolds and biocompatible, bioabsorbable foam tissue scaffolds formed by lyophilization are known. A porous, open-cell foam of polyhydroxy acids with pore sizes from about 10 to about 200 μm is used for the in-growth of blood vessels and cells. The foam also could be reinforced with fibers, yarns, braids, knitted fabrics, scrims and the like.
Articular cartilage is a tissue that covers the articulating surfaces between bones in the joints and consists of two principal phases: a solid matrix and an interstitial fluid phase. The matrix, which gives cartilage its stiffness and strength, is produced and maintained by chondrocytes. The interstitial fluid phase provides viscoelastic behavior to the cartilage tissue. In repairing articular cartilage, the tissue engineering scaffold must be fastened to the underlying bone so as not to be displaced by the movement of the joint.
Methods of repairing articular cartilage are known. One known articular cartilage repair piece includes a backing layer of non-woven, felted fibrous material which is either uncoated or covered by a coating of tough, pliable material. Means for fastening the repair piece to the underlying bone include elongated fasteners, suturing, adhesive bonding, and mechanical interlocking in an undercut portion of bone.
One attachment method to hold a biomaterial in place until healing occurs includes several steps. First, sutures are anchored through the subchondral plate into bony tissue with at least two lines emerging from the surface. The two lines are then pulled through the implant and used to secure the cartilage repair materials in place.
To avoid the need for a multi-step process, several prior works describe devices that combine scaffolds and the means for fastening the scaffolds to the underlying bone. For example, in one known prosthetic, resorbable, articular cartilage scaffold, an absorbable base component is adapted for insertion into a pilot hole into cancellous bone, permitting anchoring of the device into that bone. The scaffold is fabricated of biocompatible, bioresorbable fibers. In forming the device, some of the fibers in the scaffold are compressively forced through holes in the top of the base component to attach the scaffold to the base. This compressive force, used to attach the scaffold to the base, may damage the scaffold.
In another known bioabsorbable cartilage repair system, a porous bioabsorbable insert is held in the side walls of a support frame by means of radially, outwardly-extending flanges that pass through windows in the side walls. Though this results in a single device combining a scaffold and a means for fastening the scaffolds to underlying bone, the scaffold must be manufactured to contain the radially, outwardly-extending flanges.
Biocompatible tissue scaffolds also have been prepared from biological-based polymers such as hyaluronic acid (HA), collagen, alginates, chitosan and blends thereof. Three-dimensional porous foams and nonwoven structures of various biopolymers such as HA and collagen are known.
There are a number of tissue engineered scaffold devices that serve as architectural supports for the growth of new tissue structures. Although means for fastening these devices to the underlying bone have been described, the limits on the previously disclosed methods and devices include the need for a multistep fastening process, possible damage to the scaffold, and scaffolds that must be manufactured in very specific shapes to attach to the fastening means. Accordingly, there is a need for tissue engineering scaffold devices to be firmly affixed to hard tissue, such as bone or cartilage, wherein the scaffolds are held in place in the fixation device while tissue ingrowth occurs.